Search - environment

 
 
JAPAN
Apr 26, 1999

Ready for 2000?: Expert questions official Y2K stats

Fourth in an occasional series on Japan's Y2K preparedness
JAPAN
Apr 19, 1999

GM, Toyota team up for environment-friendly cars

Auto giants General Motors Corp. and Toyota Motor Corp. jointly announced Monday that they will cooperate on research and development for environmentally friendly high-tech vehicles over the next five years, including fuel-cell, electric and hybrid cars.
JAPAN
Apr 19, 1999

In with a Bang: Allstate banks on discount edge

Last in our series on financial deregulation
CULTURE / Art
Apr 17, 1999

Mortality caught in the blink of a shutter

Death. We don't like it, but sooner or later we all have to face it. British photographer Cesca Sims, however, has been looking it straight in the eye (through the lens of her camera) ever since she began shooting. Her first major exhibition was set in Canterbury Prison, Kent, and narrated by snippets...
CULTURE / Music / HOGAKU TODAY
Apr 17, 1999

New version of the old koto makes music for the future

While Japanese traditional instruments boast long histories (up to 1,200 years in some cases, since their importation from the Asian continent) most reached their present forms hundreds of years ago and have not changed since.
JAPAN
Apr 15, 1999

Keidanren wants Obuchi to push debt-equity swaps

The Japan Federation of Economic Organizations (Keidanren) urged the government Thursday to revise laws and taxes to help reinvigorate domestic industries.
COMMUNITY
Apr 15, 1999

Choosing to release world's bonds

His Holiness, the Dalai Lama, gives one sermon annually in the main temple's court, right in front of the entrance to his residence in the Tibetan exile community Dharmsala, in northern India.
JAPAN
Apr 14, 1999

Accelerate reform to avert depression: OECD

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development on Wednesday urged Japan to expedite regulatory reform efforts to avoid a depression and lay the groundwork for sustainable long-term growth.
JAPAN
Apr 9, 1999

April proves lethal to Japanese workforce

April is the month that Japanese workers are most likely to die suddenly, as the start of the nation's business year is believed to cause more stress-related deaths than any other month, according to a Kyoto University study group.
JAPAN
Apr 7, 1999

Japan, U.S. plan projects for 'human security' in Asia

Staff writer
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 7, 1999

In the wake of the spy boats

Two North Korean spy boats disguised as trawlers recently intruded deep into Japanese territorial waters in the Sea of Japan. This was the second incident to have heightened tension between Tokyo and Pyongyang since last August, when a Taepodong ballistic missile test-fired by North Korea flew over northern...
LIFE / Travel
Apr 7, 1999

Underwater neighborhoods

PHUKET, Thailand -- The coral-rich waters of the Andaman and Similan Seas off the coast of Phuket have become a mecca for scuba divers: Here awaits a treasure of diverse marine species, some of which can be found in few other places on earth.
CULTURE / Art
Apr 3, 1999

Home sweet home discovered between public and private

Returning to Tokyo after living and working in Europe for some years, artist Tadashi Kawamata was struck by a unique characteristic of the megalopolitan Tokyo: It appears to be an unusually orderly and clean city, despite its population. Brightly lit vending machines line the streets at almost regular...
EDITORIALS
Apr 3, 1999

In praise of Irish 'fudge'

This year, British and Irish people alike are feeling a good deal more somber than they did on Good Friday last year. Then, Protestants and Catholics in Northern Ireland found common ground for a peace agreement designed to end 30 years of sectarian violence that had claimed more than 3,200 lives. Today,...
JAPAN
Apr 1, 1999

Spy satellites to be 100% made in Japan: Nonaka

The government plans to rely solely on Japanese technology in developing four intelligence satellites to be launched by 2002, Chief Cabinet Secretary Hiromu Nonaka said Thursday.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Apr 1, 1999

Can the education escalator be derailed?

There's a debate going on in government and in the media about revising the Japanese system of education. The forces for change want to do away with rote, test-based instruction, which they blame for all the youth-related problems we read about now, and replace it with something more individual-oriented...
JAPAN
Mar 31, 1999

New equal opportunity law called a start

Staff writer
JAPAN
Mar 30, 1999

Maritime cargo carriers sail abroad for more lucrative waters

Staff writer
JAPAN
Mar 29, 1999

New OCCI head vows Osaka's revitalization

OSAKA -- The newly elected chairman of the Osaka Chamber of Commerce & Industry said Monday he will make efforts to support the environment, information, welfare and tourism as leading areas in the next century.
JAPAN
Mar 29, 1999

First Obuchi competition meeting yields promises

Government and industrial leaders agreed Monday to work together to restructure excess capacity, create new businesses and promote labor turnover to improve Japan's industrial competitiveness.
JAPAN
Mar 26, 1999

Incinerator workers become first to file dioxin claims

OSAKA -- Two former workers at an incinerator in Nose, Osaka Prefecture, applied Friday for work-related damages, claiming their illnesses were caused by exposure to high levels of dioxin at the facility.
JAPAN
Mar 24, 1999

More nurses called for to avoid mishaps

A national union for nurses and other medical workers urged the government Wednesday to greatly increase the number of nurses to prevent the recurrence of medical accidents they say could be avoided with more medical help.
JAPAN
Mar 24, 1999

Local Elections: Yokoyama campaign offers nothing concrete

OSAKA -- Earlier this week, ahead of today's start of the official campaign period for the Osaka gubernatorial election, Gov. "Knock" Yokoyama announced a 22-point bundle of campaign promises, pledging to make the prefectural government "bright."
JAPAN
Mar 24, 1999

Japan to help Russia dismantle nuclear subs

Staff writer
JAPAN
Mar 24, 1999

Trade chiefs to hold WTO powwow in May

Trade ministers from four major world economies will gather in Tokyo in mid-May to hold annual trade talks aimed at kick-starting preparations for the millennium round of global free trade negotiations, the Ministry of International Trade and Industry said Wednesday.
COMMENTARY
Mar 23, 1999

Strategies for a secure Japan

Diet has finally begun debating the enabling bills for the Japan-U.S. defense cooperation guidelines, almost a year after the government sent them to the legislature last April. How the debate will develop in the weeks ahead has an important bearing on the security environment of Asia, including the...
JAPAN
Mar 22, 1999

Italian theme, cheaper goods key to joint outlet mall

Staff writer
JAPAN
Mar 22, 1999

Dioxin high near Nose incinerator

OSAKA -- Tests on soil samples taken from areas around a controversial incinerator in the town of Nose, Osaka Prefecture, revealed that two sites had dioxin levels exceeding limits set by the Environment Agency, operators of the facility said Monday.
JAPAN
Mar 22, 1999

Doctors far from malpractice accountability

Staff writer
CULTURE / Art
Mar 20, 1999

Japanese custodians of French 'Liberty'

On the occasion of French President Jacques Chirac's visit to Japan in 1996, an exchange of national treasures was agreed upon for the 1998-1999 "Year of France in Japan." Following this agreement, Kudara Kannon, a 7th-century 2-meter wooden bodhisattva from Nara's Horyuji Temple, was sent to France...

Longform

Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?